I was first introduced to Tink at an industry event back in 2014 when she was being introduced as a member of Mosley Mosley Group/Epic Records. She was introduced as a protégé of Timbaland along with singer V. Bozeman. Immediately, I thought she has so much potential, slightly reminiscent of another former Timbaland protégé, Ms. Jade. I hoped she would have a longer career, and this label partnership seemed like a good step in that direction.
The label didn’t work out and Tink’s music with Timbaland mostly never even saw the light of day, but I mention that event because what I remember most was that Tink was introduced as one of the new stars of Hip-Hop. The following year when she was featured on the XXL Freshman Cover, she was still more of a melodic Hip-Hop artist with a sound similar to early Dej Loaf, rather than an R&B artist. So its a bit ironic that she is the first woman I am highlighting in this series. She has developed into quite the R&B artist, one that still have a flow and can rap when necessary, but is a singer first and foremost.
Prior to me being introduced to Tink, the Chicago native, born Trinity Laure’Ale Home, had already released five different mixtapes, so fans already knew about talent for singing and the unique versatility she possessed. Her first project, Winter’s Diary was released in 2012. The follow-up projects, Alter Ego, Blunts & Ballads, and Boss Up made a lot of people take notice, including Timbaland. After Winter’s Diary 2: Forever Yours was released in early 2014 the hype surrounding the Timbaland event made sense to most fans and there was talk that she would be able to surpass the success of all his previous artists.
Her first official single with Timbaland was “Around The Clock” featuring Charlamagne The God. Next came “Ratchet Commandments”. The song created a buzz, but the song, “Million,” which featured a sample from Aaliyah.
By the time her 2015 mixtape, Winter’s Diary 3 was released I was fully paying attention. The whole time she was still working with Timbaland on her debut album, which was supposed to be titled, Think Tink.
The fact that she continued to release music throughout and despite the label issues, is why she’s since been able to find success as an independent artist. Fans have have watched her grow up before their eyes and now at just 25 she is exactly where she is supposed to be. Her fan base continues to grow, her music continues to get better and we continue to look forward to what’s to come from Tink.
Her 2018 EP, Pain & Pleasure kicked off what feels like a next level in her career ever since. The 2019 mixtape Voicemails offered more indication of just how great she can be. Most recently in February 2020 Tink finally delivered her debut album, Hopeless Romantic, long awaited but well worth the wait. A partnership with EMPIRE, the project features the singles “Fuck Around” and “Cut It Out”.
Can’t wait to see what’s next from Tink.
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